Saint Lawrence’s Church

Altarpiece of Our Lady

Mariaretabel van de Sint-Laurentiuskerk in Bocholt

Saskia Vanderstichele - Openbaar Kunstbezit Vlaanderen

Kerkplein, Bocholt

In the Sint-Laurentiuskerk in Bocholt the glittering gold decoration and many figurines immediately attract your attention to the altarpiece of Our Lady. It has everything a high quality altarpiece should have: ingenious figurines in a finely crafted cabinet, painted shutters and a treasure trove of stories.

Saint Lawrence’s Church

The present St. Laurentiuskerk, which is a typical Maasland village church dating back to the late Gothic 15th century, was expanded in the early 20th century and rebuilt after WWII. The marlstone tower, which is the oldest part (1411), was moved ten metres in 1910. The church is one of the most important in the Limburg Kempen region, together with two other Flemish masterpieces: a more than 5 metre high sacrament tower by Aert van Tricht dating back to the 15th century and a more than 2.5 metre high Christopher statue dating back to circa 1530 created by Jan van Steffeswert.

Altarpiece of Our Lady

The creators of this impressive altarpiece with wood carvings and painted shutters, a Flemish masterpiece, were inspired by Bible stories about Mary’s life and family. The current altarpiece, an assembly of no less than 77 figurines, is the result of a restoration project by the Antwerp sculptor Pierre Peeters. In the early 20th century, he combined the Antwerp altarpiece of Our Lady (circa 1525) with panels depicting the life and martyrdom of Saint Lawrence. The painted side panels are attributed to Colijn de Coter.